Woman of Distinction Award 2014

Santa Barbara Associates

Ann Moore, Honorary Board Member, and Denise
Lockhart, previous recipient of the WOD

Santa Barbara Associates’ Woman of Distinction Award was established in 1999 to honor Diana Meyers, a charter member of the Associates who exemplified the professionalism and dedication to excellence and service that characterizes Santa Barbara Associates.

Woman of Distinction 2014

I have the pleasure of announcing this year’s Woman of Distinction. The nominee easily meets the qualifications necessary to be considered for this award. In this case, she is a long-time member of the Associates, AND she has made significant contributions to her profession and to our community.

The recipient this year was unanimously selected by the committee—comprised of Jo Wideman, Lynn Hamilton and myself—after considering the nominations received.

This year’s Woman of Distinction is probably best known for her warmth, intelligence, ready smile and keen sense of humor. She grew up in Pasadena where she lived an idyllic childhood in a “father knows best” household. She was even a debutante before attending UC Berkeley in its pre-hippie era!

After earning an undergraduate degree in journalism, she found that the only job she could get was reporting on society events, such as ladies teas and black-tie fundraisers. Wanting to do something more interesting, she enrolled at Hastings Law School in San Francisco. After a year there, she decided against continuing on that path, and instead embarked on her next and perhaps most challenging “career:” motherhood! In the process, she raised four children.

At some point she transitioned back into the work force. She wrote law-related curricula for grades K-12, and also worked on a video project where she received training in the production of broadcast quality videos. This enabled her to produce videos of Junior League programs such as “Images of Aging.” That led to a film called “Cancelled Lives: Letters from the Inside,” which has been used for television and in schools. She has also written curriculum on self-esteem and civics, with such series as “Yes I Can” and “Bridges,” as well as other books that are used in schools
around the country.

At the time she became a member of the Associates, she was the Executive Director of the Santa Barbara Branch of the Arthritis Foundation, a position she held for 10 years. In addition to overseeing the local chapter of the Arthritis Foundation, her work there primarily involved raising money to support programs, services and research.

After retiring from the Arthritis Foundation, she served as a consultant to raise funds for nonprofit organizations such as the Center for Successful Aging. She also gave many presentations about Medicare and Social Security to seniors in the Santa Barbara community, and was an active volunteer for Life Chronicles, helping people to write their memoirs.

But retirement did not “take.” At the young age of 74 and 9/12ths, she rejoined the work force by becoming the Planned Giving Officer for the Tri-Counties area of the American Red Cross. She was again tasked with fundraising, a field she excelled in as both a professional and volunteer. She finds it just a tad ironic that holding social events and fundraisers for so many organizations over the years is just the type of thing she used to report on as a novice journalist fresh out of college! So life came full circle for her. She recently left the Red Cross and is now positioned for her next life adventure, wherever that may take her.

As a “history buff,” she has served on UCSB’s History Associates Board, focusing on the history of entitlement programs. She is active in and/or has served on the boards for numerous nonprofit organizations including the Santa Barbara Symphony League, Junior League of Santa Barbara, Speaking of Stories and, of course, the Santa Barbara Associates.

She maintains her own business, “Telling Your Story,” which helps seniors to write and memorialize their memoirs. She is a published author having written a moving memoir of a World War II flight navigator whose plane was shot down over Germany.

Please join me in congratulating Ann Moore for earning our Woman of Distinction award for 2014, which she soundly deserves!

Woman of Distinction 2014